TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post Reply
User avatar
AKR
Posts: 5234
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:33 am
Contact:

TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AKR »

00 Chauvin [St Emilion] Over 3 nights, served cool, with and without food. 13.5% abv. Cork is soaked maybe 1/4 of the way. First bottle from a case purchased EP. Color is ruby red, with some cloudiness, and the first hints of lightening at the rims. Nose of cut strawberries, cinnamon, macadamias. Medium bodied, thick legs. Doesn't particularly need food to be enjoyed. Really drinks the best on the 3rd day, which is impressive. It's been a long time since I've had anything from this estate; I think the last time was their luxe bottling called Vieux Chateau Chauvin, made infrequently (?). Between the name (VCC) and its price, they probably got some negociant pushback, and it seems to be great rarity. And in any case, that whole schtick is more of a Rhone kind of thing, rather than a Bordeaux one. Anyways back to this, the palate is good, balanced and taut fruit with pipe tobacco flavors, a 30+ second finish, and only the lightest of tannins left here. I actually find it more on the red, crunchy fruit side of the spectrum than the raisiny, porty side. I am surprised the SO let me have the last glass -- she's feeling ill and only wanted a bowl of chicken soup and is now drawing a hot bath. It's an A- now, and ought to hold that way for a few years more.

Image

Image

PS: I look forward to sharing this with BWE'ers. To my eye, the label looks like Cheval Blanc's.
User avatar
AlexR
Posts: 2373
Joined: Fri Nov 21, 2008 10:35 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AlexR »

Hi Arv,

I’ve never tasted or even seen. Vieux Château Chauvin, so your post intrigued me.

The 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2014 editions of Féret ("Bordeaux et ses Vins" AKA "The Bordeaux Bible") all list Chauvin as having 15 hectares of vines.

The 2001 edition, however lists a Vieux Château Chauvin with 13.5 hectares as belonging to the Thienpont family. However, there is no mention whatsoever in the 2004 and 2007 editions
It does crops up, however, in the 2014 edition as the second wine of Chauvin…

This website gives a little further information.
http://sergedoreselections.com/wine_inf ... u-chauvin/

Intrigued by the inconsistency of these sources, I called the château. The secretary has not been at the estate for decades, but she said that she thinks the 2001 edition of the Féret simply printed a mistake.

Chauvin was acquired by Sylvie Cazes of Ch. Lynch Bages in 2014.
I’ve always found it to be a rich wine typical of its appellation.

Factoid: the French word "chauvin" means "chauvinistic".
Extract from Wikipédia:

"According to legend, French soldier Nicolas Chauvin was badly wounded in the Napoleonic wars. He received a pension for his injuries but it was not enough to live on. After Napoleon abdicated, Chauvin was a fanatical Bonapartist despite the unpopularity of this view in Bourbon Restoration France. His single-minded blind devotion to his cause, despite neglect by his faction and harassment by its enemies, started the use of the term.[2]

Chauvinism has extended from its original use to include fanatical devotion and undue partiality to any group or cause to which one belongs, especially when such partisanship includes prejudice against or hostility toward outsiders or rival groups and persists even in the face of overwhelming opposition.[2][3][4] This French quality finds its parallel in the British term jingoism, which has retained the meaning of chauvinism strictly in its original sense; that is, an attitude of belligerent nationalism.[4][5][6]

In contemporary English, the word has come to be used as shorthand for male chauvinism, a trend reflected in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, which begins its entry on chauvinism with "an attitude that the members of your own sex are always better than those of the opposite sex."

All the best,
Alex R.
User avatar
AKR
Posts: 5234
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:33 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AKR »

So the backstory on this other VCC is that in 1998 they took a small parcel and vinified/elevaged it separately.

This was during the early/peak (?) garagiste movement when it probably seemed fashionable to do this kind of thing.

And of course they charged more for it.

The wine was good, having bought a bottle, and tried it in a panel of smaller production right banks for comparison (probably turn of the century time frame)

I had long assumed that was the one & only time they did it, since I never saw it referred to again. Presumably negociants weigh in on this kind of thing a little too, since if they don't believe in the concept, or if they can't sell it, it doesn't really matter if one or two barrels are better.

But when looking around for a picture of the label to show how similar the Chauvin and Cheval Blanc look (at least to me) I saw pictures of a 2009 "VCC" label. I'd never known or heard of that. eRP only records the 1998, and if anything, if one was trying to sell these tete du cuvees, I'd think it would be mandatory to have critical acclaim.

Image

The importers' notes are here

http://sergedoreselections.com/wine_inf ... u-chauvin/

All of this news to me.

My general feel is that I'd rather have an estate make a lot of "90 pt" wine for a fair price, rather than a lot of "89 pt" wine for a fair price with a smidge of "92 pt" wine at a high price.
User avatar
AKR
Posts: 5234
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:33 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AKR »

From the spreadsheet I recovered last week (under my yay! thread), probably created by Billo, I have these notes from June 2002, neatly sandwiched between Vieux Chateau Certan and Vieux Donjon.

98 Vieux Chateau Chauvin [St Emilion] This is the luxury 1000 case cuvee of Chauvin and like all these wines it is huge, thick and oak laden. Supremely concentrated with a tannic edge. Black plummy fruit is in the forefront now. Oozing legs to this solid wine. Difficult to find this probable Michel Rolland effort but worth the effort as its a lot of wine for the price. 91 pts
User avatar
DavidG
Posts: 8280
Joined: Sat Nov 22, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Maryland
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by DavidG »

I had a few of these (the 2000 Chauvin, not the luxury cuvée). Loved it and another good QPR. Sounds like it has aged a bit since the bottles I drank in 2011:

2000 Chauvin: Dark red to rim. Complex nose with cassis, dark fruts, earth, cedar. Full body, ripe layers of dark fruits, leather, coffee, hints of weedy earthiness add complexity, excellent balance, long finsh, has years to go. Outstanding.
User avatar
JimHow
Posts: 20108
Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2008 10:49 pm
Location: Lewiston, Maine, United States
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by JimHow »

The 2005 Chauvin was a solid effort.
User avatar
DavidG
Posts: 8280
Joined: Sat Nov 22, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Maryland
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by DavidG »

When I see that Vieux Chateau Chauvin label my brain wants to autocorrect it to Vieux Chateau Certan.
User avatar
Claret
Posts: 1143
Joined: Mon Jan 26, 2009 9:16 pm
Location: Reno, NV
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by Claret »

The 00 was a fruity and easy to drink wine that I finsihed up a few years ago.
Glenn
User avatar
AKR
Posts: 5234
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:33 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AKR »

We had another bottle of the 2000 Chauvin [St Emilion] over the last couple of nights, with a Jamie Oliver recipe for chicken with leeks & fennel. Both the wine and recipe were good, although maybe a more Provencal wine would have paired better. This bottle the cork was perfect, the wine dark, and an a nicely polished, flavorful St. Em. Much better than the underwhelming 00 La Clotte from midweek. This is an honest Saturday night wine, worth getting the good stems out for. It didn't fade either, so no worries on drinking up, although I have pulled all mine from storage.

I tried to post a picture but for some reason BWE is not accepting the upload. Are we now limited to 256kb for pix size? So here's a link to the pix

https://photos.app.goo.gl/C5BuSxQi4ZwvhnGo1
User avatar
JimHow
Posts: 20108
Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2008 10:49 pm
Location: Lewiston, Maine, United States
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by JimHow »

I drank through a case of this within two years after release.
User avatar
AKR
Posts: 5234
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:33 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AKR »

I thought I'd had one of these recently but forgot it was just last month! So I pulled the cork on another one last night with random leftovers, as we ate at our kitchen breakfast counter. Yum! This is so fruity and nice compared to other St Em's of that era which are now starting to get a little tired.

Sometimes vintages between 1995-2005 pop up for sale in the $30-40 zone and I think those would be safe bets, even now.
User avatar
Claret
Posts: 1143
Joined: Mon Jan 26, 2009 9:16 pm
Location: Reno, NV
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by Claret »

A Parker Pick of the vintage.
Glenn
User avatar
AlexR
Posts: 2373
Joined: Fri Nov 21, 2008 10:35 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AlexR »

Izak (GreatBxFreak), Ian Amstad (Comte Flaneur), and I had the 98 on Friday night.

Good, rich, full-bodied Saint-Emilion in its prime. More foursquare than elegant, but still quite good.

Alex R.
User avatar
AKR
Posts: 5234
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:33 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by AKR »

a slightly underwhelming bottle last night ... just popped and poured ... should be drunk up now....
User avatar
robert goulet
Posts: 1266
Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2009 8:18 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by robert goulet »

Had the '71 last yr at a bday dinner...was still quite nice and for a song!
User avatar
Harry C.
Posts: 538
Joined: Tue Jan 27, 2009 1:00 am
Contact:

Re: TN: 00 Chauvin [St Emilion]

Post by Harry C. »

Concerning VVC and the mangod, he wrote in WA “this garage wine is produced from a parcel carved out of the better known Chauvin estate.”
Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Bing [Bot], Google [Bot] and 15 guests